Seeing The Eternal In The Temporal

[Guest guest]

 

     Om Sai Ram

 

     Indiatimes spirituality (Monday, March 15, 2004) published the article

by William and Debra Miller "Seeing The Eternal In The Temporal."      Below is

the article in a short form.

      Have you ever faced a challenge at work and felt stuck in finding a

solution? Or, felt alone in your work with no one to support you in your

efforts? These are examples of when it's important to step back and see our

work from a broader perspective. Einstein explained this well when he said that

we cannot solve our problems at the same level that we created them.

     We've found that this ability to see our work from a broader perspective

requires an internal shift in our vision that we like to describe as "seeing

the eternal in the temporal". This is the wisdom that Krishna taught Arjuna in

the Bhagavad Gita:

     When one sees Eternity in things that pass away and Infinity in finite

things, then one has pure knowledge (18:20).

 

     Sathya Sai Baba explains the relationship of the eternal to the temporal in this way:

 

     When you see a film, you do not see the screen as screen; you forget its

existence. But the screen is there all the time and it is only the screen that

makes you experience the picture. A volcano throws up its lava on the screen,

but the screen is not burnt. The screen is the truth; the film is an illusion,

however realistic it is, however genuine the feelings it arouses. God is the

screen and the objective world is the film. See all as but expressions of the

same God, as appearances on the same screen.  

     When we learn to respect the dignity and inherent worth of ourselves and

others as sparks of Divinity (Atman), we shall capture a high level of

self-discipline, human concern, and practical efficiency.

     But how do we "see" the eternal in the temporal world we work in each day?

In order to do this we must practice a new way of “seeing”: we must shift from

seeing our work through our minds to seeing it through our hearts.

 

    When we say "mind", we mean our capability to mentally focus and concentrate

on the individual, separate parts of a situation. By “heart”, we refer not to

our emotions, but to our capability to reach inside ourselves, connect to the

very core of our reality, and then see the spiritual whole as well as the

parts.

 

     The more you consciously attempt to reach within, the more the quality of

your decisions will be enhanced. At first this type of contemplation was so

difficult. Why? Because I am an engineer and my entire training throughout my

life was to solve problems. It was so difficult for me to just sit back and

listen and pray. This is a marvellous discipline that some of my business

colleagues have helped me to develop.

 

     Ultimately, bringing the eternal to the foreground of our awareness, and

moving the temporal to the background, allows us to know the substance behind

all of this worldly form – just as the 14 th century Christian mystic, Jan van

Ruusbroec, experienced it:

 

     The image of God is found essentially and personally in all mankind. Each

possesses it whole, entire and undivided, and all together not more than one

alone. In this way we are all one, intimately united in our eternal image,

which is the image of God and the source in us of all our life.

 

    The complete article:  http://spirituality.indiatimes.com/articleshow/561245.cms

 

     Namaste - Reet